User Interaction Model

Description

Pointwise commands are accessed through a series of pull down menus arranged across the top of the Pointwise window. For convenience, many commands are also
accessible through keyboard shortcuts and toolbar buttons.

Note: The menus are the most complete way to access Pointwise commands. Toolbar buttons and keyboard shortcuts speed access to
frequently used commands.

The Pointwise menus are:

File: Is used for opening and saving Pointwise Project Files and importing and exporting files from other systems.

Edit: Contains Undo, Redo, and commands for modifying entities.

View: Has controls for various Display window view orientations and the overall layout of panels and toolbars.

Examine: Provides ways to get detailed information about grid quality and other aspects of the grid.

Select: Includes various ways of selecting entities and controls for selection behavior.

Create: Is used to build new database and grid entities.

Grid: Is used to apply Pointwise’s grid methods to improved grid quality.

Script: Provides Glyph scripting and journaling controls.

CAE: Is used to set the analysis software type and dimensionality which Pointwise will export to, and is also used to set boundary and
volume conditions.

Help: Provides access to the Pointwise help system.

Pointwise provides a convenient layout of command menus.

Pointwise uses a noun-verb interaction model. That means that you first pick the entities to be operated on and then choose which action to perform on them.
For instance, to copy a collection of entities, first pick the entities to be copied and then select Copy from the Edit pull down menu (or
simply use the Ctrl+C keyboard shortcut or the Copy toolbar button). Once the operation is complete, the originally selected entities are still
selected and ready for other operations.

More information about Pointwise’s interaction model is available in the GUI section of this manual.

Pointwise also includes a scripting language, Glyph, that can be used to control the entire meshing process. Any command that can be done interactively, can
be done through scripting as well. This is useful for controlling Pointwise in a batch process, coupling it with other software for optimization, developing
standalone meshing applications and automating various meshing tasks.

More information about Pointwise’s scripting capability is available in the Script section of this manual.